episode_0103

Episode 103. This is not it (2)

****

Anne tilted her head.

Istina. She’s Professor Asterix’s graduate student… … Why did you come looking for me? Did you notice that I stole your stethoscope a few days ago?

“What’s going on?”

“I came to give you a stethoscope.”

There is a saying that a thief’s own feet are numb. Anne was terrified. However, Istina did not seem to understand why Anne was acting like that.

He just looked a little tired.

“Yes?”

“Why are you like that?”

Anne fiddled with her hair absentmindedly.

If she had known he was going to give her a stethoscope, she wouldn’t have bothered to steal it. Anne cautiously accepted the parcel in question.

“Thank you. Should I give this stethoscope to Professor Kropelter?”

Anne nodded. She already had one. It was too late to declare that she had stolen it. Anyway, she had it, so that was the end of it.

Stina awkwardly greeted him and left the room. That was how the uncomfortable conversation ended.

Istina sighed as she left.

Stethoscope One successful delivery now, 49 more to go. It’s going to be a long day.

****

Today is outpatient clinic time. It’s mostly routine work, but there was one thing I was looking forward to this time. Natalie was coming back.

I was a bit curious.

Did the medicine work? Did you take the medicine? Did you take it but the effect was too strong, so you didn’t take it, or did you not take it because it didn’t make much of a difference?

I’ve heard that there are many cases like that.

People with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often blink and have difficulty following set schedules.

I heard that there are many cases where people don’t take their medicine at the set time. That’s why they gave them only one pill a day, but I don’t know what happened.

“Ms. Natalie, please come into the examination room.”

The door to the examination room opened.

“Hello.”

I looked at Natalie as she walked into the examination room. Medicine really is scary. The way she came into the examination room was already different.

How was Natalie last time?

Before I could even finish telling him to come into the examination room, he kicked the door open and barged in, fiddling with things on my desk and talking for a while.

Not this time. Natalie came in quietly, didn’t break anything, didn’t fiddle with anything, and sat down in front of the examination room like a normal person.

That’s amazing.

“How did it feel after taking the medicine?”

“Well, I’m not sure if it works.”

Even the look in his eyes is different from last time.

Natalie has stopped looking around anxiously compared to last time. She may not have noticed it, but

“I guess you don’t know.”

“I feel like my mind has cleared up a bit, but I don’t feel like I’ve experienced anything dramatic.”

I nodded.

“Patient. Do you know why the effect of the medicine is not strongly felt by the patient?”

“Don’t you know?”

“Amphetamine is a drug to the average person. If I or someone without a disease were to take it, I wouldn’t be able to just ignore it and say I wouldn’t feel any effects.”

That’s the unknown part.

“That’s amazing.”

“This is it. Most of the behaviors that the patient did because of his neurosis were not behaviors that the patient wanted to do or did consciously.”

“Really?”

“It is a disease like that. Even if the hyperactivity decreases, the patient may not notice it. How did the people around him react?”

Natalie tilted her head.

“People around me… … . I don’t know.”

“Think about it carefully. Compared to the last time you came. Last time, I even asked about the colors of the cats living in front of the patient’s dormitory, but this time, you’re thinking carefully about your answer.”

I can see it. Even if Natalie herself doesn’t know, the people around her must have felt the difference. Even the way she speaks has definitely changed.

“Oh, that’s true?”

“Yes. When was the last time you took your medicine?”

“Uh… ….”

“Patient, you forgot to take your medicine for a few days, but then remembered that you had to come to the hospital, so you took it, right?”

“Oh my. How did you know?”

“It’s a normal disease. After taking the medicine, does it help you work or study?”

“A little bit. It seems like everyday life has become a little easier… … . I don’t know.”

“Nothing is more important than everyday life.”

Natalie nodded. I was the one who convinced Natalie to take the medicine, but I felt a little uneasy because she seemed to have completely changed.

“Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a disorder in which the reward circuitry of the brain is damaged. That is why people with the disease, like you, have difficulty making plans and carrying them out.”

It’s easier to think long-term. Just as someone with fewer fingers has trouble writing, the brain circuits that make plans are missing or broken.

“Is that so?”

“There are cases where it can be covered up because of high intelligence or other strengths.”

I took the bottle of medicine I had made earlier out of the desk drawer and placed it on the examination table. Natalie stared blankly at the bottle.

“Yes.”

“The patient’s ability or intelligence is not related to the ability to execute plans. This is also something that can be treated with medication.”

“But, do I have to eat it every day?”

I shook my head.

“Take it whenever you need to. Even if I told you to take it every day… … . It’s obvious you won’t take it every day. Take one pill at a time, such as before a test or when you have something to see. Don’t take more than one pill a day.”

Right, I didn’t say that. Natalie reached out, but I grabbed the vial again.

“The medicine I am giving you, you must never give it to anyone else. This calms you down and clears your mind, but only for the patient. It is a drug for the average person. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“Never give it to others.”

Natalie nodded vigorously and took the vial. It won’t be a problem, right?

“Oh, thank you so much.”

“I have one more thing to tell you.”

Natalie nodded. I took out my desk drawer again and placed a toy in front of her. It was a fidget spinner.

A toy that can be held and turned with one’s fingers.

A round mechanical device turned with a small humming sound. It was something I had custom-made a few days ago after treating Natalie.

The spinner slowed down. Natalie stared at it for a while, and only looked up when it stopped moving.

“Are you giving me this too?”

“Yes.”

How to use it, I don’t need to tell you. Just turn it. It may not have much effect on the average person.

The immediate reward of spinning a spinner can be appealing to people with attention deficit disorder.

It is not medically proven that spinners are effective in treating ADHD, but I have seen a few people who have seen the effects.

It might be worth a try. Natalie held the spinner in one hand and spun it around with a seemingly absentminded expression.

The fidget spinner wasn’t loud, just a small metallic noise.

“But, sir.”

“Yes.”

“No one, not even the other healers, ever told me I might have a disease. There were people who called me weird, but… … .”

It was a common occurrence. It was like that in my past life, and it might be worse here.

“That’s because they don’t know. The patient doesn’t have that nerve circuit. It’s not much different from cursing someone for having no limbs. We need to make an effort to manage this disease.”

This society still retains, in many ways, a medieval and barbaric culture and technology.

In a society where people whose wounds are visible cannot receive help, it is only natural that people whose symptoms are only in their heads cannot receive help.

“I think this is the first time I’ve seen a teacher who was so genuinely concerned that he even found this disease. He even suggested a solution.”

Natalie looked impressed. I nodded and closed Natalie’s medical records.

“Yes, well… … . I’m waiting for the next patient. If you have any inconvenience, please come back.”

It’s nice to have a touching moment, but I’m busy. Natalie nodded and left the examination room.

****

Dean Fischer was pondering the new stethoscope and auscultation booklet he had just received on his desk. A very tired-looking graduate student of Professor Asterix had just given them to him.

He might be a surprisingly good person.

Well, maybe that’s to be expected.

If auscultation helps determine a patient’s condition, spreading this technology as soon as possible may save more patients.

In that sense, it might be worth giving as a gift at your own expense. Last time, when I was teaching a class on the stethoscope method, I wrote it down for a graduate student and brought it with me.

see.

What did Professor Asterix write down? Five points on the heart, and both sides of the lungs. Possible diseases based on the sounds heard.

The more I look at him, the more I find him fascinating. I wonder when on earth he researched and wrote this. I’ll have to try it to find out, but this is truly a revolution.

An instrument and methodology that has the potential to elevate the act of auscultation from the level of simply listening to a patient’s back to the level of an art.

Actually, I’ve thought about this before. It was also unusual to just hand out the stethoscope to Professor Asterix.

This would have been an area where he could have made enough money. He could have used it for his own gain, such as by selling stethoscopes at high prices or publishing a thesis on the method of auscultation.

“Then. Let’s go… … .”

Istina bowed and quietly left the Dean’s office, leaving the troubled Dean behind.